Criminal Evidence 5LAW1035

Criminal Evidence 5LAW1035
Assessment 1 Semester B 2020

Word count: 6 pages (approx. 1,500 words). The page limit applies to the text and footnotes and does not include the bibliography – see the assessment template document (attached above) for further information.

QUESTION

Discuss any evidential issues which you think are relevant from your reading of the documents below. Your answer should include (but is not limited to) a discussion and analysis of, the following:

• Relevance
• The legal and evidential burden
• Any examples of the following: direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, real evidence, documentary evidence
• Identification evidence
• Confession evidence
• Admissibility and exclusion of evidence

Your essay should provide full reasoning, citing any relevant statutory or other authority where appropriate.

DOCUMENTS

You are a solicitor in the criminal department of Bootle and Co. Mr Fellows’ case has been sent to St Albans Crown Court and you have been sent the prosecution bundle of evidence which contains a case summary, a witness statement and the transcript of interview.

The following is an extract from the case summary:

The detainee, Jack Fellows, is a 19 year old man. He was arrested on Bath Road, close to Hatfield Station, at 21.30 yesterday evening with two others. The police were called to the area following the robbery of a young woman, Sarah Matthews, on Hare Street at around 20.20. Miss Matthews works at Stevenage Hospital as a nurse and was walking home from Hatfield Station when she was followed by a group of six young men.

The men crowded around her and one of them asked her for the time. She was very frightened and told the man she did not have a watch. The same man asked her to check her phone for the time. She refused and he then took out a large kitchen knife from the waistband of his jeans held it to her throat, saying “just give me your bag”.

Miss Matthews panicked and handed her handbag to the man which contained among other things her mobile telephone, a tablet, her purse and house keys. The men ran off and Miss Matthews ran back to the station and asked a member of staff to call the police. Miss Matthews was very upset after the incident. She told the police that her attackers were white, aged between 18 and 22 and that the one with the knife was wearing a distinctive red and white hooded sweatshirt. She does not believe that she would be able to recognise the men who robbed her.

Mr Fellows was stopped with two other males (one of whom was wearing a red and white hooded sweatshirt) on a street nearby around an hour after the robbery. Officers stopped and searched them as they believed they may have been involved in the earlier robbery. The police found an iPhone in Mr Fellows’ jacket pocket which Miss Matthews has subsequently identified as her stolen telephone. The other men did not have anything from the robbery in their possession. There is CCTV of the area around the station which shows the incident but none of the suspects’ faces are visible and it is impossible to identify anyone.

The two other men who were arrested with Mr Fellows, including Pete Barlow, have been released pending further investigation.

As a result of comments that Mr Fellows made to PC Millar at the police station, the police searched a wheelie bin near to where Mr Fellows was arrested. Inside the bin they found the victim’s handbag and purse (which were both empty). A further search of the area resulted in the discovery of a knife discarded behind a fence. All of these items have been sent for forensic analysis and Mr Fellows’ fingerprints have been found on the inside and outside of the purse and on the knife handle; Pete Barlow’s fingerprints have also been found on the knife handle.

You read the transcript of interview and note that Mr Fellows answered no comment to all questions on legal advice. (document not included).

You then read the witness statement from PC Millar (see Document 1 below)

Mr Fellows has been granted bail and he comes to see you in the office. He tells you that he was present during the robbery but had no idea that his friends were going to rob the woman or that one of them had a knife. He says that one of his friends passed him the phone and the knife when he saw the police car approaching and told him to get rid of them, so he quickly disposed of them.

He tells you that he has never been in trouble with the police before. He says that he struggled at school and still has problems reading and writing and admits that he is easily influenced by his friends.

In relation to the comments he made to PC Millar at the police station, he says that he only admitted to being present at the scene of the robbery because he was scared about going to prison and believed PC Millar when he said he had video evidence and that he could get him a reduced sentence.

Document 1

STATEMENT OF WITNESS

(MC Act 1980 s.5A; CJ. Act 1967 s. 9; MC Rules 181 r. 70)

Statement of: PC Alan Millar
Age: Over 18
Occupation: Police Constable
Address: Hatfield Police Station

This statement (consisting of 2 page(s) each signed by me) is true to the best of my knowledge and belief and I make it knowing that if it is tendered in evidence, I shall be liable to prosecution if I have wilfully stated in it anything which I know to be false or do not believe to be true.
Dated: 20.2.2020 Signed: PC Millar

I was on duty at Hatfield Police Station on 20 February 2020. I interviewed Jack Fellows, who was under arrest for robbery, in interview room number 3 between 23.05 and 23.30 hours.

Following the interview, I showed Mr Fellows’ solicitor out of the police station and I decided to visit the police cafeteria as I was feeling hungry. I noticed through the window that it was raining outside.

Afterwards, I went back to the custody office and went to see Mr Fellows in his cell. Mr Fellows was crying and he had a very guilty look on his face. I went inside the cell and the following conversation took place:

I said, “It’s no good crying now, you should have thought of that before you robbed that poor nurse.”

Jack Fellows made no reply.

I said, “You really shouldn’t have gone ‘no comment’ in interview. While I was gone, I heard back from the council video operator. He said that they have very clear video of the robbery which shows you snatching the bag from the nurse. What do you have to say about that?”

Jack Fellows still said nothing and started to cry more.

I said, “We know there were six of you, who else was involved? It will be better for you if you tell the truth and let us know who the others were. I could talk to the judge and say you helped us. If he thinks that you provided us with assistance you might even get a suspended prison sentence.”

Jack Fellows said, “I can’t tell you who they are. I’m not a grass.”

Dated: 20.2.2020 Signed: PC Millar

I said, “Do you know how much trouble you are in? Big lads like you picking on a young nurse. You’ll get five years for that in the Crown Court. Horrible place, prison, you won’t last five minutes. I can make sure you share a cell with the biggest, nastiest crim going. It will serve you right after what you and your mates did”.

Jack Fellows then said, “I knew my mate Pete had a knife, but I didn’t know he was going to use it. I didn’t want to take part, but I was too scared to run off. After, he made me take it to get rid of it. I feel really bad about what happened, the nurse looked really scared. I can’t name the others though, they would kill me. Please can you speak to the judge and tell him that I’m sorry. I can’t go to prison.”

I said, “I can’t help you if you don’t help me.”

Jack Fellows then said: “My mate threw the handbag and purse into a wheelie bin on the junction of Bath Road and Waverley Road. I bet it’s still there, at least she can get some of her stuff back.”

I then left Jack Fellows in the cell and closed and locked the cell door.

Dated: 20.2.2020 Signed: PC Millar